In case you’re in need of a good chuckle this week, here’s a real doozy. The U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE) is a watchdog group that aims to prevent conflicts of interest from occurring in the highest offices in the country. They’re not exactly a casual type of people. But it appears they have a much better sense of humor than anyone gave them credit for.
In the wake of President-elect Donald Trump’s vow to remove himself from his various business interests, someone with control of the verified Twitter account at OGE decided to beat Trump at his own game. They mocked Trump’s tweeting style and sniped at his failure to realize he needed to divest (reduce his ownership stake) in his businesses to avoid conflict in the first place. Take a look at the snark:
At first, people thought the sarcasm was the result of a hack. After all, you wouldn’t exactly expect such snark from a straight-laced set of people like the ethics police. Then NPR received an email from Seth Jaffe, who is the chief of the agency’s ethics law and policy branch:
“Like everyone else, we were excited this morning to read the President-elect’s twitter feed indicating that he wants to be free of conflicts of interest. OGE applauds that goal, which is consistent with an opinion OGE issued in 1983. Divestiture resolves conflicts of interest in a way that transferring control does not. We don’t know the details of their plan, but we are willing and eager to help them with it.”
It’s the Twitter equivalent of an eye-roll from nation’s foremost government ethics body, and it is unexpectedly and most welcomely hilarious.
Not exactly the greatest start to your Presidential career when you’re Twitter-trolled by the ethics experts. I think they’re going to have plenty of work to do during the next few years, don’t you?
Watch an Associated Press clip detailing Trump’s business/Presidency conflict issues here:
Featured Image via screenshot from YouTube video
